225035 Community based participatory research in action: The experience of Project VOGUE

Monday, November 8, 2010

Sheldon D. Fields, PhD, RN, FNP , School of Nursing, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY
Damon Humes, MHS , MOCHA Center, Inc, Rochester, NY
Stephaun Clipper , MOCHA Center, Inc, Rochester, NY
Kaijson Noilmar, BA , Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Legacy Project, HIV Vaccine Trials Network, Seattle, WA
Catherine Bunce, MS, RN , School of Medicine & Dentistry, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY
Michael Keefer, MD , School of Medicine & Dentistry, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY
Issue: The House/Ball community is a subset of MSM at high risk for HIV due to unprotected anal sex and substance abuse within their closed social network. Specific HIV prevention interventions/programs have not targeted this population. More so, growing numbers of African-American and Latino MSM continually affiliate with House/Ball culture. The number of national organized “houses” grew from 35 to 50 in the last five years. The House/Ball community has also not been the target of focused interventions regarding participation in HIV vaccine clinical trials and other bio-medical research. Description: Project VOGUE is a 2-year, two part pilot initiative consisting of formative and ethnographic research; as well as the development of a comprehensive HIV prevention and HIV clinical trials awareness curriculum targeting members of the House/Ball community. Its goal is to provide effective harm reduction strategies to reduce their risk of contracting HIV/STIs and to decrease stigma regarding HIV vaccine research. CBPR principles underpinned the formation of the “Council of Houses” (COH) comprised of 15 local house ball community members as expert informants for Project VOGUE. Lessons Learned: Engaging the COH from the beginning was pivotal in getting buy-in and building trust among the target population. Supporting the COH social networking activities fostered further collaboration and has positively influenced HIV risk behavior social norms among Project VOGUE participants. Recommendations: CBPR methods should be used when attempting to engage hard to reach sub-populations of MSM. Collaborative partnerships between researchers, community-based organizations and at-risk MSM populations should be established and strongly encouraged.

Learning Areas:
Administer health education strategies, interventions and programs
Advocacy for health and health education
Assessment of individual and community needs for health education
Diversity and culture
Planning of health education strategies, interventions, and programs

Learning Objectives:
1. Describe the House/Ball social network and identify strategies to involve them in HIV prevention and vaccine clinical trials research. 2. Describe how CBPR principles were used in the establishment of an effective key informant group known as the “Council of Houses” within the House/Ball community. 3. Discuss strategies of recruitment and engagement for partnering with high risk MSM populations such as those in the House/Ball community.

Keywords: HIV Interventions, Community-Based Partnership

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I over all of the research activities for this project, I also have over 15 years of experience working in the HIV prevention arena focused on MSM of color populations.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.